THE HAGUE, 01/12/05 - The US has promised the Dutch military will be given support if soldiers in the Afghan province of Uruzgan should run into trouble. It is unclear how exactly this support would appear.

Foreign Minister Ben Bot and Defence Minister Henk Kamp spoke with four US envoys in The Hague yesterday. "We had a clear message. There can be no misunderstanding on our solidarity," said Daniel Fried of the US state department. "The Dutch can rely on getting the military support that is necessary."

Fried referred to the Srebrenica tragedy in 1995 when Dutch soldiers in the UN's Unprofor mission received no support from other Western countries. "We remember the Balkans 10 years ago. But NATO is no Unprofor."

Until recently, it appeared pretty certain that the Netherlands would send 1,100 soldiers to Uruzgan in 2006. But serious doubts have arisen among the Christian democrats (CDA) and centre-left (D66) among other parties on security guarantees for the Dutch soldiers in the turbulent province.

The conservatives (VVD) support the mission "providing the security risks are acceptable and clear agreements can be made about prisoners," said MP Van Baalen. Last week, the impression arose that he was against the operation.

Van Baalen did say yesterday that he considered the US officials should have been received by Dutch officials rather than by the two ministers. For talks with Bot and Kamp the US should have sent their counterparts Condoleezza Rice and Donald Rumsfeld, in his view.